Driving at night tips?

[Fintastic]

We're not strangers to long road trips, but we've always done them during the day. For our Disney trip we're going to drive overnight. Our trip is only about 12 hours so we'll do it all at once. Any tricks or tips?

 

[NotUrsula]

Limit yourself to 90 minute shifts during your normal sleeping hours. Make sure your headlights are aimed properly and the lenses are clean, to give you as much light as you can (though hi-beams are normally not necessary on a well-traveled interstate.) If you normally wear contacts to drive, carry wetting drops and/or be prepared to take them out and use driving glasses instead. Eyestrain is the most common reason for night-driving accidents, as it takes a lot of energy to keep your eyes focused on a highway in the dark.

Try not to eat too heavily at dinner, but do eat protein.

I also love audio books for driving, the funnier or more suspenseful the better. I prefer to use my bluetooth earpiece rather than full headphones when driving, as I think they block out a bit too much of the other noise around you. If you have a decent public library system, you should be able to download a variety of titles at no charge. (BTW, for keeping the kids entertained when they are awake, I find that the Kingdom Keepers book series is great fun on WDW road trips, as the books are set there. They are meant as young adult novels, so they won't bore the adults to tears, but they are OK for a school-aged audience.)

 

[nono]

We enjoy driving overnight to FL. For us, what works is: 45 min naps when not in the driver's seat. 2-2.5 hour stints in the driver's seat. Humorous audiobooks or comedy "albums" downloaded. Laughing keeps our minds alert. Having all sorts of plans for "outs" if things aren't going well. Don't make it a must do to make it to Orlando by a certain time, etc. Pack all sorts of snacks - esp. anything bite sized. One of my favorites on the road are lifesavers. I never eat them in real life, but Pep o Mint lifesavers are my go-to snack at night. We encourage everyone to drink a drink 45 min before the next rest stop....synchronized bladders makes no excess stops necessary. Also, run around, cartwheel, whatever, at the rest stops. Sometimes, we bring out a nerf football and play catch for about 10 min before continuing...yes, at 3 a.m.

 

[earfulofmagic]

Take a nap in the six hours before you drive and try caffeine mints/gum if you'll need caffeine. otherwise, nono said a bunch of things I would've mentioned!

 

[justussix]

Caffeine. Honey twist pretzels. Gum. Headphones with energy music (allowing the passengers to sleep, but the driver to stay pumped). I usually pick something nostalgic that I enjoyed in my teen years and can sing along (or lip-sync) too. Play games with the road. Watch for speed traps (out of state, and only car on the road = bulls eye!). And more caffeine.

 

[MaryLovesPoohBear]

We actually set a timer for every two hours. Because we always seem to think we can drive just a little bit further.

We also pack high protein snacks. Cheese and meat kabobs are a favorite. Another is provolone and pepperoni slices rolled into tubes.

We are of an age where bathroom stops can't be planned. So we just make sure that the other driver gets out of the car and walks around when one of us has to stop. Oh, and lots of good music.

 

[peg110]

We actually set a timer for every two hours.

No need for me to do this... My Bladder and the Truck's Gas tank demands it. Of course we are towing our camper down, so that doesn't help the fuel economy.